IT Operating Models

IT operating models refer to how an IT organizations organize their work to create value for customers and users. The past few decades have seen dramatic changes in IT operating models, including the adoption of agile practices, DevOps team structures and automation practices, and new sourcing models including cloud computing and digital ecosystems.
Existing research has examined choices in each of these areas and their effects on outcomes (e.g., speed, reliability, costs) in isolation. However, these choices are rarely made in isolation. Thus, there is limited research-based normative guidance to organizations on how to configure their operating models in such way that it fits the organization’s contextual factors and the outcomes that matter most to the organizations. In this project, we address this gap by conducting a configurational analysis based on case study and survey data to explore: How do configurations of IT operating model choices and of context factors affect key outcomes of IT operating models, including speed, reliability, and costs? To support the transfer of our findings to the industry, we will build, based on our empirical findings, a decision support infrastructure that enables managers to choose and reflect on IT operating models which fit their organizational context factors and the organization’s prioritized outcome dimensions.